Discipleship, Advent and the DNA of Joy

Hebrews 10:34 stands out in startling contrast to the West's emphasis on materialism at this season.  It reads “You had compassion on those in prison, and you accepted the plundering of your possessions with joy, knowing yourselves to have a better and abiding possession.” And perhaps nowhere else is the difference between Biblical joy and happiness more pronounced, than it is here. In particular happiness depends so heavily on happenstance (everything going my way)! Joy, on the other hand transcends circumstances and allows us to rise above them. Paul and Silas  also illustrate this well, being able to sing hymns at midnight after having been been severely flogged, thrown into prison and put in stocks. And surly their joy was part of what lead the jailer at Philippi to convert, and having believed to rejoice, he and his household (Acts 16:23-34).

What I am saying, is that joy is yet another part of the DNA of the yeast that we are to be, that is to spread through the whole lump,  to the ends of the earth. Notice that this is not stoicism, gritting our teeth and simply enduring. Stoics don't sing hymns at midnight having been beaten with rods, and having had “many stripes” laid on them (verses 22, 23 NKJV). This joy is supernatural and flows out of being vitally connected to the source of all joy, to the One who “for the joy set before Him endured the cross despising the shame” (Hebrews 12:2). By and large the Church is not there yet, but as I keep saying if we are to be His “disciples indeed, ” we must get past the superficial happiness of the season and with His supernatural help , count it all joy when we find ourselves in the mist of diverse trials and temptations (James 1:2).

One of the proofs of the resurrection of Christ, is that many who had seen Him post resurrection were willing to go to their deaths, rather than renounce their faith. You do not die for a lie! All this bring us back to the last part of Hebrews 10:34, and to the question “what is it that they had, that we don't.” I don't know what you are going through this morning, but I suspect it's not greater than what Paul went through and described it as “our light and momentary afflictions that are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Corinthians 4:17; 11:24-33). I am not saying this is easy, nor that we can do this without Him. But what I do know, is that the day I knew was going to be the worst day of my life the Lord, among other things, drew my attention to the above Hebrews 12:2, and told me that pain is a barrier the other side of which is joy. He was telling me that I needed to push through the pain to joy.

Father, thank You for the hope, peace and joy that Advent brings when we tap into it, and it penetrates our hearts. If we are to engage in that form of discipleship that will go to the ends of the earth , and bring in the prophesied billion soul harvest, we must be infectious and display the character of the early believers, in particular, their joy. We cannot do it without You. And You will not work this work in us without our radical surrender (Luke 9:23). So this morning Lord I surrender all to You as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1) in Jesus Name Amen